Ferdinand's future on line at hearing

Rio Ferdinand's chances of playing for England in next year's Euro 2004 finals will hang in the balance today when he appears before a disciplinary hearing to answer charges of missing a doping test.

Nearly three months after the alleged offence, Ferdinand finally gets his chance to explain how he came to leave his club Manchester United's training ground on September 23 when UK Sport's doping control officers were waiting for him to provide a urine sample for a routine test.

The hearing is scheduled to run into tomorrow. But while any penalties are expected to be announced at the end of the hearing, that is not guaranteed to be the end of the affair.

Any punishment announced by the FA will be subject to appeal and it is almost certain that the squadron of lawyers United has employed to defend its player will contest anything beyond a short, symbolic ban.

United has not been alone in applying pressure. FIFA supremo Sepp Blatter, infuriated by the length of time it has taken for the FA to get within sight of a decision, has suggested he could intervene if he deems the outcome too lenient.

A suspension of three months is the outcome most have been predicting. That would ensure Ferdinand, who has been suspended from playing for England since the affair became public but has continued to play for United, is back in action by the end of March, in time to ensure he is ready to represent England at Euro 2004 in June.

In theory, Ferdinand could be banned for up to two years and there is little doubt that, if he were a swimmer or a track-and-field athlete, that is the kind of punishment he would be facing. Under the International Olympic Committee's "strict liability rule", forgetting to attend a test offers no defence.

Ferdinand, 25, maintains he has never used performance-enhancing or recreational drugs and insists he simply forgot about the test. A test that he took within 36 hours of the one he missed proved negative, although that is unlikely to have much bearing on the outcome. The delay would have been long enough to allow several banned substances to be eliminated from the body.

According to leaked details of the argument Ferdinand's lawyers will present, the player realised his mistake when shopping soon after the training session.

Meanwhile, Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy says he is negotiating a contract extension that would keep him at United for the rest of his career.

"We are in negotiations, but at the moment I have not signed anything," van Nistelrooy told Dutch television channel RTL5. "What is certain is that if I sign a new contract with Manchester, this will mean I will finish my career there."

A second-string Arsenal side beat first division outfit West Bromwich Albion 2-0 and Bolton Wanderers edged Southampton 1-0 after extra time to reach the English League Cup semi-finals.

Nigerian Nwankwo Kanu gave Arsenal a 25th-minute lead and French strike partner Jeremie Aliadiere was gifted the other after a howler by West Brom keeper Russell Hoult.

Danish striker Henrik Pedersen grabbed the winner for Bolton with five minutes left of extra time in the other quarter-final.